I have been living a lazy, decrepit writer’s life. Just ask the spider who built a web condo on the bottom of my desk. This sad realization came upon me as I ventured downstairs and opened the curtains. The sunlight revealed a thick layer of dust on my once pristine writing spot in our furnished basement. Laundry baskets full of dirty socks surrounded the bookcase. The solid oak desk with its brass knobs became a holding place for expired magazine issues. Inside the drawers were cables, appliance warranties, and a floppy disc. This used to be where I spent countless hours creating plays, short stories, and personal essays on my desktop ‘95 and ‘04 models. Then the call of new technology enticed me into purchasing an iPad. Now I had the chance to write in a coffee house, a plane, or even on a beach.
Days of hurrying down to my space in the basement with a cup of tea in my hand were gone. I ignored my sacred corner like a forgotten childhood stuffed bunny. One day, upon seeing an old script of mine lying on a chair when using the printer, a pinch of nostalgia took hold. I wanted to write, but was still under the illusion of living a writer’s life with an iPad.
I spent the rest of the winter scribbling thoughts in a journal. Unfinished stories filled the pages. My imagination still worked; the motivation to complete a finished piece vanished.
These thoughts milled around as a spider scurried across the rug. Experienced writers stress the importance of carving out a space for creativity. Something as basic as a pen and paper or keyboard and monitor in the right spot can spark a new manuscript. My carelessness affected my approach to writing.
In one hour, drawers were emptied. Useless items ended up in the garbage. The next day I purchased a laptop, sat in my big leather chair behind the desk, inhaled the clean scent of lemon Pledge, and felt ready to write… again.
* * *
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Would you like to participate in Friday "Speak Out!"? Email your short posts (under 500 words) about women and writing to: marcia[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com for consideration. We look forward to hearing from you!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Elizabeth--It's amazing how--when our writing spot or method is changed--how inspiring it can be. I've had to resort to handwriting in a notebook instead of using my laptop or I've had the chance to use my laptop in a coffeehouse instead of writing at home, and the results have been surprising. Sometimes when we veer from the norm, our muse is awakened.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your future writing endeavors, and thanks for this post.
I can smell the lemon Pledge! I just love a clean office space. Recently, in a writing group, we talked about writing spaces, and it was interesting to hear about the places where other writers feel inspired to write. I do all my business writing in my dedicated office/art studio on my iMac, but do all my creative writing on my MacBook Pro, and usually in bed or by my backyard pool. I'm glad you feel inspired to write again, Elizabeth! Congrats on your third Speak Out post! :)
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you about the writing space. My surroundings completely affect how I am writing. It's so true that there are even certain coffee shops that do or don't work for me, depending on the lighting or decor. I thought maybe there was something wrong with me for a while! LOL Anyway, glad you got your spot back and are writing again.
ReplyDelete